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Men's Soccer

Jun 15, 2021

Clemson Men’s Soccer: 2020-2021 Season in Review

In the 61 seasons of Clemson men’s soccer, none were as unique as the Tigers’ 2020-2021 campaign. Having to play a split season amongst a global pandemic forced head coach Mike Noonan, his staff, and the entire roster to rise to the occasion as they set out to become the best team that ever played in a pandemic. Despite daily uncertainty surrounding the program and all of college athletics, the Clemson men’s soccer team prevailed.

Overall Season Review

  • 14 — Clemson’s win total during the 2020-21 season. This was the seventh time during the past eight seasons that Clemson has recorded double-digit wins.
  • 32 — Clemson has earned 32 wins across the past two seasons, the highest two-year total since the 2001-02 seasons (33).
  • 15 — This season was the 15th time in program history, and the third time under head coach Mike Noonan, that Clemson men’s soccer posted 13 or more wins and 3 or fewer losses in the same season. 
  • 700 — The team earned its 700th win in program history by defeating American, 2-1, in the second round of the 2020 NCAA Tournament.
  • 0 — Games canceled due to COVID-19.

Postseason Success

  • 15 — Clemson men’s soccer won its 15th ACC Championship on November 22, 2020.

  • 4 — The number of wins Clemson had during its 5 postseason matches this season. 
  • 0 — The number of losses Clemson had in postseason play during the 2020-21 season.
  • 3 — During the spring, Clemson won its third ACC Atlantic Division title since 2014. 
  • 1998 — Before 2020, the 1998 season was the last time that Clemson earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Defeating No. 1

  • 11 — The number of wins against a top-ranked opponent which Clemson men’s soccer has accumulated in program history.
  • 3 — The number of wins against a top-ranked opponent which Clemson earned in 2020-21. This was the most in a single season in program history.
  • 1 — 2020-21 was the first season in program history that Clemson had defeated the nation’s top-ranked team multiple times.

Season Accolades

  • Clemson’s staff was named United Soccer Coaches’ South Region Staff of the Year following the 2020-21 season.

  • 4 — Number of All-South Region honors Clemson collected this season.
  • 7 — Number of All-ACC honors Clemson received for the 2020-21 season.
  • 2 — Number of players that Clemson had named to the ACC All-Freshman team.
  • 5 — The number of ACC Player of the Week honors Clemson collected during the season.
  • 9 — The number of national Player of the Week honors Clemson earned during this past season.
  • 40 — Total number of weekly honors which Clemson players received this season.
  • 1 — Clemson’s Justin Malou was the only ACC men’s soccer player named a finalist for the Senior C.L.A.S.S. Award.
Clemson Tigers Official Athletics Site

#ClemsonUnited in the Rankings

  • 17 — Weeks ranked within the top-5 nationally.
  • 6 — Consecutive polls that Clemson spent ranked No. 1 nationally. This was tied for the second-longest streak in program history, and the longest since 1985.
  • 6-1-3 — Clemson’s record against opponents ranked within the top-25 during the 2020-21 season.
  • 7 — Clemson’s national ranking at the conclusion of the 2020-21 season.

#ClemsonUnited National Stat Rankings

  • As a team, Clemson ranked within the top-25 of seven statistical categories.
    • Total Goals (#3), Total Points (#6), Goal differential (#11), Won-Lost-Tied Percentage (#16), Corner kicks per game (#22), Shots per Game (#22), Total Assists (#23).
  • Individually, Clemson had six players rank amongst the top-30 for numerous individual categories.  
    • George Marks — Goalie minutes played (#2), Total Saves (#18), Shutouts (#18)
    • James Brighton — Penalty-kick conversion (#1), Game-winning goals (#14), 
    • Hamady Diop — Penalty-kick conversion (#1)
    • Luis Felipe Fernandez-Salvador — Penalty-kick conversion (#1)
    • Grayson Barber — Total assists (#9)
    • Kimarni Smith — Total goals (#13), Total points (#17)
  • Clemson saw 27 players earn action across multiple matches this season.
  • Justin Malou and Charlie Asensio were the only two players on Clemson’s roster who started each match this season.
  • Charlie Asensio led the team in participation, having played 1,876 minutes.

No Place Like Home

  • 25 — Clemson’s current unbeaten streak at Historic Riggs Field. This is the third-longest streak in program history and the longest since 1982.
  • 1 — Clemson’s national ranking for attendance during the 2020-21 campaign. A total of 7,314 spectators attended Clemson’s eight home matches this season while Historic Riggs Field operated at a capacity of 1,000 spectators per match.
  • 105 — Clemson celebrated the 105th anniversary of Historic Riggs Field on Oct. 2, 2020.

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Academic Success

  • 7 — The Tigers saw seven members of its program, six players and one alumni, earn their degrees during the 2020-21 academic year.
  • 3.38 — Men’s soccer’s GPA for the 2021 Spring Semester. This is tied for the third-best in program history.

  • 10 — Number of players on the roster who earned a 4.0 GPA during the spring.
  • 14 — Consecutive semesters in which Clemson men’s soccer has posted a GPA of 3.00 or better.

Professional Success

  • 2 — The number of players Clemson had drafted within the first four picks of the 2021 MLS SuperDraft, making the Tigers the first school to accomplish the feat this season.
  • 3 — Clemson had three players drafted in the first round of the 2021 MLS SuperDraft. This was the first time in program history this had occurred.
  • 4 — Total number of professional contracts that Clemson players signed following the 2020-21 season.
  • 17 — Number of players selected from Clemson under head coach Mike Noonan during the last eight MLS SuperDrafts.

Building the Brand of #ClemsonUnited

  • 652,659 — Total number of interactions @ClemsonMSoccer generated on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter during 2020.

  • 64,613 — Total number of followers @ClemsonMSoccer has across its Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok accounts.
  • 6,391 — Total number of photos shared with the Clemson men’s soccer program during the 2020-21 season. 
  • 20 — In the four days surrounding the 2021 MLS SuperDraft (Jan. 20-23), @ClemsonMSoccer outperformed 20 MLS clubs on Instagram, generating 38,134 interactions and garnering 30,904 video views.
  • 4 — Through the first four months of 2021, Clemson generated more interactions on Instagram (288,695) than 4 MLS clubs.
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